The Place, London
October 24, 2025
Little M is British/Swedish trans, non-binary dance artist and choreographer Anders Duckworth’s reimagining of Hans Christian Andersen’s familiar tale, The Little Mermaid; created “for anyone who feels like they’re swimming against the tide,” as the publicity puts it. It makes for an enjoyable 75 minutes. My nine-year-old grandson also thought it was magical, although that, I’m afraid, passed me by.
Co-directed by Duckworth and Luke Skilbeck, the work involves a great deal of differently gendered interpretation, which while interesting, does at times seem at odds with the characters that the dancers are portraying. Perhaps this was intended but, if so, it needs to be carried through with a little more conviction. As it is, the work gets lost somewhere between Little M being a ‘they’ trying to find themselves, and a prince opting for a definitely female human to be his princess, rather than Little M.
Duckworth’s choreography is pleasant enough but felt somewhat uninspired. It doesn’t help that the four dancers (Jose Funnell, Áine Reynolds, Naissa Bjørn and Tylee Jones) were constantly interrupted and overwhelmed by interventions from the nine off-stage voice-actors. Those actors too often also sounded like they were reading the script, rather than performing it.
Photo Camilla Greenwell
Kit Hinchliffe’s set is well thought out and works well. The choice of a bed on wheels as a movable piece of scenery felt a little odd though, especially considering that it was used mostly in the underwater scenes. Could it be a nod, deliberate or otherwise, to Bedknobs and Broomsticks and ‘The Beautiful Briny,’ I wonder?
The costumes, by Eve Oakley, are echoes of a past era when differently gendered was not a consideration, and feel like a mis-match.
With so many theatre productions having them these days, if you are going to promise “fantastical puppetry” and “magical transformations,” you have to deliver. Little M never really gets there, although the puffer fish puppet is endearing. I would also like to have seen more of the crab, performed with style, engagement and humour, which had the audience laughing along. I would love to tell you who the dancer was, but sadly, and inexplicably, names were not put to roles.
Just to re-emphasise, Little M is enjoyable. Just don’t expect too much. But it did leave me wondering quite what Duckworth and Skilbeck want to present and what message they want to get across. It felt like it was trying to make a statement, be an exploration of gender, and simultaneously tell the classic Andersen story, never quite achieving any of them as fully as it might.